Dental xrays-any dentists around?

[wolfbrother]

My teenagers have been offered "routine" dental xrays every two years I'm a bit unsure about "routine xrays"-is there any evidence to support doing that?
They have had no fillings by the way-healthy teeth from the surface view!

(If any dentists/knowledgeable people are kind enough to reply, please don't think I am ignoring you-probably wont have internet access again until the weekend.)

Thanks

Two yearly xrays are the nomal and recommended by NHS. Xrays make it possible to see areas of the teeth that are not visual to the naked eye ie the contact area between the teeth and under the gum line.
The radiaion exposure during dental xrays is very small about the same as what you would get on a flight to spain

i think the health protection agency's website may have some advice on dental xrays. Sorry no time to look for it but try google?

Hi, I am a dentist and totally agree with orangehead. x

Yes, what orangehead said. They are almost certainly arradiated more from their mobile phones/microwaves/daily lives than they would be from these x rays which are arguably of more benefit. You should discuss your concerns with their dentist.

*irradiated

Ionising radiation is a little bit different to mobile phones and microwaves

Ionising radiation causes cancer. Yes you are exposed to small doses each time you fly or if you sit on granite rocks for instance but there are strict rules about exposing people to it uneccessarily so. dental x-rays may detect early disease but I have 2 fillings and am approaching 50 and would have had numerous dental x-rays routinely by now had it been the fashion when I was younger. Unnecessary.

Recent article

Yes because the risk of the extra radiation is far higher than the possibility of a life threatening dental abscess. If you look hard enough you can find a website which tells you anything you want.

What railway child says.

Here is the HPA advice to dentists HPA. See pages 10 and 21 in particular. Basically dentist should only x ray if clinically required. Risk is low per dose, but the risk is a cummulative one so therefore having one every 2 years as routine is an increased risk.

Personally as they have such healthy teeth i probably wouldnt do it as routine.

Yes you can find a website to say anything you want (eg ant vac stuff) but the HAP is the regualtory body for this so scientists not crackpots. Link above also looks decent.

I didn't realise that dental abscesses were rivalling cancer. It gets such little media attention doesn't it.

How much do they charge for X-rays nowadays?

Out of interest......

On nhs they are included in band 1 treatment which is £16.50. That includes check and a cleaning if one required.

Railway, how many people do you know who have had toothache? (Lots on here alone). How many people to you know who have had cancer caused by a dental x ray exposure?
X rays free for children on the NHS, in fact on the NHS you don't pay any extra for x rays in any situation.

Well I could ask... How many friends have you got who died because of their toothache?

I know of people who have had toothache (myself included and I had an X-ray at that point in time)

I know of no one who has died from toothache.

I do have two friends currently fighting with thyroid cancer and a friend of my mother died from it last yr.

What does this prove? Fuck all.

Cancer is caused by ionising radiation. Fact. I'm not inventing radiation as a cause of cancer There are signs on the door and controls to stop accidental exposure for a reason.

I am not for one minute suggesting that everyone refuse x-rays and as I said I've had an x-ray myself when necessary. The key part of this is 'necessary'

I think 'routine' x-rays are a very easy way to raise the risk of cancer over a lifetime.

There are people on this site who choose foods and additives really carefully but would accept radiation just because it's available?

Thank you all for replying.

I have discussed it with the dentist but she just says "I have to offer them every two years, it's up to you whether they have them."

I'm still mulling it over, but thank you all for your thoughts.
Babymay, is it possible then that you would want to extract a tooth if the person had no pain at all but the xray looked dodgy??